April 6, 2022
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After a 13-month layoff, Tiger Woods will tee it up at the Masters tomorrow at 10:34 a.m. ET, and the betting public couldn’t be more excited. Despite long odds (+4000), a tournament-high 11% of the money is on him to win it all, per Darren Rovell.
Stefon Diggs’ $70M Is 2nd-Most Guaranteed Money for WR
Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports
Stefon Diggs is the latest high-profile receiver to ink a mega-deal this offseason.
On Wednesday, the Bills locked in the two-time Pro Bowler with a four-year, $104 million extension through 2027, according to ESPN [[link removed]], while NFL Network [[link removed]] reported $96 million, plus incentives.
Either way, Diggs has deservedly joined the list of elite receivers making bank in recent weeks — and his $70 million guaranteed is second at the position.
Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: 4 YR/$120M ($72.2M guaranteed) — highest AAV all-time for WR.Davante Adams, Raiders: 5 YR/$141M ($67.5M guaranteed)D.J. Moore, Panthers: 3 YR/$61.9MMike Williams, Chargers: 3 YR/$60MChris Godwin, Buccaneers: 3 YR/$60M
Diggs and Josh Allen will remain one of the NFL’s top offensive duos for the foreseeable future. Last offseason, the Bills signed the QB to a six-year, $258 million contract ($150M guaranteed) through ’28.
In his two seasons in Buffalo, Diggs has caught 230 passes for 2,760 yards and 18 touchdowns, including a career-high 10 in 2021.
Diggs’ extension should give Buffalo — the Super Bowl favorites (+650) — more room to build next season’s roster. According to the NFLPA [[link removed]], the Bills have $3.9 million in cap space for ’22 — the third-least in the league — before the Diggs deal is official.
Lakers Miss the Postseason With 4th-Biggest Payroll
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The Lakers were officially eliminated from the play-in tournament on Wednesday, capping an epic flameout for arguably the highest-profile franchise in the NBA.
They spent $164.4 million this offseason (4th in NBA) and began with the second-best odds to win the Finals (+350). But while the top three spenders at least made the play-in game, the Lakers will miss the postseason for the seventh time in nine years — and only the 12th in franchise history.
Things will only get murkier this offseason.
Coach Frank Vogel ($4M AAV) is expected [[link removed]] to be fired with one year left on his deal.Both Russell Westbrook and LeBron James have one year left on their contracts. Westbrook (18.8 PPG) had arguably the worst year of his career, but is owed $47M next season.James averaged the most points in his career (30.3), and he’s owed $44.5M next year.
With six players on the books earning a combined $146.6 million next season, the Lakers must decide how much of the wreck to salvage.
But the disgruntled [[link removed]] James turns 38 next year and will be a UFA in 2023.
The Lakers have little trade capital outside of their Big Three and can’t even use the poor season to nab a top player in the draft — the 9-seed Pelicans own all their first-round picks through 2025.
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The first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals [[link removed]] continues today at 3 p.m. ET. The highlight matchup of the round takes place in London where Chelsea hosts Real Madrid in a rematch of last season’s semifinal.
Can the 14x UCL winners enact revenge over Chelsea before returning to Spain for the second leg?
Stream Chelsea vs. Real Madrid and Villarreal vs. Bayern live today on Paramount+. Try it free [[link removed]]!
Jose Ramirez Inks Largest Contract in Cleveland History
Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
After changing the name [[link removed]] of the club in July, the Cleveland Guardians are starting to commit to their future on the field.
On Wednesday, Cleveland signed star 3B Jose Ramirez to a five-year, $124 million extension with a full no-trade clause, per multiple reports. The Guardians picked up a total of $26 million in options on his current contract, guaranteeing the 29-year-old $150 million and setting him up with the team through 2028.
Though the new contract ranks 36th in the league by total value and 26th by AAV ($24.8M), it’s actually [[link removed]] double the largest contract Cleveland has ever given out.
But overall, the Guardians are staying thrifty as they build on a young core with a $40.4 million payroll — 27th in MLB.
Their only other commitment past 2022 is to closer Emmanuel Clase, who reportedly [[link removed]] signed a five-year, $20 million deal recently.Cleveland agreed to one-year arbitration deals with SP Shane Bieber ($6M), SS Amed Rosario ($5M), and DH Franmil Reyes ($4.6M).Led by OF George Valera (47th), the Guardians have five top-100 prospects per MLB.com [[link removed]] — tied for fourth-most in the league.
In time, they’ll look to build that core around Ramirez’s rock-solid production: Last season, he posted a 5.7 offensive WAR (4th in AL), an .893 OPS (6th), and 111 runs scored (5th).
All the same, Cleveland shouldn’t expect to compete right away — the club has the fourth-best odds (+1000) to win the AL Central this season.
Making Headlines
AFC Ajax
Soccer: Manchester United is expected to appoint Erik ten Hag as its next manager, per ESPN [[link removed]]; ten Hag has been Ajax manager since 2017, leading the club to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019 and two Eredivisie titles.
Golf: Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson was eligible to compete in this week’s tournament but pulled out of the event, according to Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley; Mickelson hasn’t played in a PGA Tour event since his controversial comments about the Tour and the proposed Saudi Arabia breakaway league in mid-February.
NBA: The Bulls announced that Lonzo Ball (knee) will miss the remainder of the season; he signed a four-year, $85M deal with Chicago this offseason and averaged 13 points in 35 games.
NFL: Terrell Owens announced he’ll be playing with Johnny Manziel and the Zappers in the Fan Controlled Football League; the 48-year-old last played professionally in 2010 (Bengals).
Written by Chris Kuc [[link removed]], Anthony Puccio [[link removed]], Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]
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